History

Newman's small class sizes and individual tutoring lead to outstanding National Student Survey results. For the last two years Newman's History department has scored 100% student satisfaction

History at Newman concentrates not only on what happened, but why these things happened. This approach explores the factors influencing historical events and giving a greater understanding of how society has developed the way it has.

A rich and varied course, history at Newman will take you on a voyage of discovery which will span the origins of humankind to the burning issues of the present day. During the three years of the single and joint honours courses you will have the opportunity to study Ancient Greece and Ancient Egypt, Roman Britain, Tudor England, the Russian revolution and the Third Reich.

Initial teacher training specialising in History concentrates on the National Curriculum for History at the appropriate Key Stage.

Why History?

"Not to know what took place before you were born is to remain forever a child"(Cicero)

"Histories make men wise" (Francis Bacon)

Aims and Objectives of History courses within Newman University

The department recognises the importance of being able to identify the subject specific ‘graduate attributes’ that it aims to foster in its students. The following statements on History-specific skills and qualities are taken from Benchmark Standards in History from the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (January, 1999) and are both endorsed by the department and emulated in its practice.

The historian's skills and qualities of mind:

The ability to understand how people have existed, acted and thought in the always different context of the past.

The ability to read and use texts and other source materials, both critically and empathetically.

Appreciation of the complexity and diversity of situations, events and past mentalities

The understanding of the problems inherent in the historical record itself: awareness of a range of viewpoints and the way to cope with this; appreciation of the range of problems involved in the interpretation of complex, ambiguous, conflicting and often incomplete material.

Basic critical skills: a recognition that statements are not all of equal validity, that there are ways of testing them, and that historians operate by rules of evidence.

Intellectual independence: the ability to set tasks and solve problems.

Marshalling of argument - in written and oral form drawing on and presenting all the above skills.

History - Beyond Graduation

History gives you excellent training in processing information, research, the technique of critical investigation and the analysis of data. Therefore History provides you with a platform of skills which you can use in professional training in subjects such as management, accountancy, law, the civil service, local government, librarianship and even teaching! The way of thinking that History engenders has also proved invaluable in more technical professions such as engineering, architecture and computing.